Canadians lead the way in 1,000K Great Virtual Race Across Tennessee

A trio of Canadians are leading the Great Virtual Race Across Tennessee (GVRAT), Laz Lake‘s 1,000K virtual event. The race, which is in its second year of running, started on May 1 and lasts until the end of August, and while that gives runners plenty of time to complete what is actually a 1,033K journey, the participants at the front of the race are looking to go as quickly as possible. The current standings have Calgary’s Varden Morris in first place, followed by Matt Shepard of Valleyview, Alta., and Crissy Parsons, the lead female, who hails from Petawawa, Ont. 

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The GVRAT 

Lake created the GVRAT in 2020, when it became clear that in-person races wouldn’t be making a comeback anytime soon. He plotted a virtual route across his home state of Tennessee (which is where he hosts his in-person races, such as the Barkley Marathons), and while participants couldn’t physically run the course, they would be able to monitor their progress. The race leaderboard is set up so it can be updated whenever a participant completes a run. 

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In 2020, the race was extremely successful, and just six days into the months-long event, 18,000 people had already signed up to run. This year it’s less popular (likely due to the fact that in-person races are returning), but the run still has more than 5,000 participants. As an added challenge, runners can opt to do an out-and-back loop, so if 1,000K isn’t enough for them, they can double up and run back across Tennessee for a solid 2,000K summer running project. 

The race 

In the 2020 event, Terri Biloski of St. Thomas, Ont., was the first “human finisher” of the GVRAT. Biloski completed the run in 11 days, 20 hours, although she was beaten to the virtual finish line by a participant listed as “Gingerbread Man.” Since this mystery figure’s name was unknown, Biloski was the big winner, although the Gingerbread Man finished in 11 days.

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Ten days into the race, Morris sits in first place with 963K under his belt. As can be seen on his Strava page, Morris has been running at all hours of the day, and he seems to like midnight long runs. With only 70K to go until the finish, he could beat Biloski’s time from 2020 if he commits to a big push over the next day and a bit. 

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Morris is well ahead of the rest of the field, and the next-closest runner is Shepard. Members of the Canadian ultra community will know Shepard well, as he is a regular contender at races north of the border, and he ran on the Canadian team at Big’s Backyard Ultra (another event organized by Lake) in 2020. Shepard is about 730K through, and although he still has 300K to go, second place is likely his to win, as Parsons sits 100 miles back in third place. With her 570K, Parsons has a 140K lead on fourth place and a 175K lead on the second-place woman. 

If Morris can hold on and continue to push toward the finish, the GVRAT will likely have its second champion in event history in a day or two. To follow the race progress, click here.